The Apogee of Soviet Political Romanticism: Projects for Moral Renewal in Early Perestroika (1985–1989)

Abstract

This article analyses the early reforms of perestroika (1985–1989) that aimed to overcome the perceived moral crisis of Soviet society. A close study of the public debates of that time reveals three conflicting perspectives on morality. By situating these debates in the wider context of Soviet and Western intellectual history, this article argues that the Soviet liberal project was part of a broader phenomenon, namely, the apogee of political Romanticism in the USSR. This conclusion, in turn, sheds light on the specificities of the Soviet liberal moral project, which inspired Gorbachev’s reform strategy from 1987 onwards.